Page 88 of Mine to Keep

“Where are you?”

He cradled Zadie in the crook of his arm and rocked her back and forth. She was close to a full wail, and Bryn had not answered her cell, which wasn’t like her. “What’s the matter?”

“Something is terribly wrong.” She skidded to a stop at the end of the island. “Is Bryn here?

“No. Why?”

His mother shoved her cell in front of his face. “I got these cryptic texts from her. They don’t make any sense to me, and other than responding that I’d do it, I didn’t think I should say anything else. Oh, I sent your brothers over to her place, but they are under strict orders to do nothing except report back to me.”

“Nancy is here with the kids.” Jamison traded Zadie for the phone. “I don’t understand this,” he mumbled as he read the texts. “But there are some things about Bryn’s past that Rhett and I just found out.”

“Like what?”

“Do you know who the Perish family is?”

“I don’t know. Should I?”

“Long story short, Bryn was married to a man who used to beat the shit out of her. He’s dead, thankfully, but his parents are bad people, and if they knew she was alive and had a kid, they’d come after her.”

“Looks like they found her.” His mother bounced up and down, pressing her lips against Zadie’s pudgy little cheek as the baby cried.

“Who’s Jamie?” Jamison asked.

“I’m guessing that’s you. But Bryn texted me, the chief of police, so we’re doing this my way.” She kissed Zadie. “You be a good little girl for your Auntie Nancy while Jamison and I go save your mommy.”

“Relax?You want me to fucking relax?” Jamison paced two blocks from Bryn’s house as he ran his hand over the top of his head. “Some crazy lunatic is holding her at gunpoint and that’s your best advice?”

“Let me do my job,” his mother said as she strapped on her bulletproof vest.

His brothers Nathan, Emmett, Seth, and Emmerson all did the same thing.

Jamison leaned against his Jeep and folded his arms across his chest. He’d never felt so helpless in all his life. “I’m going in with you.”

Seth held his weapon at the ready. “No. You’re not. You’re going to stay right here.”

“They know what they’re doing, so let them do it,” his father said.

“I concur.” Steve handed him a bottled water.

Fucking wonderful. His dad and biological father were ganging up on him, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do because he knew they were right.

“It’s going to be okay. She’s a smart girl. What she had him do by texting me was genius,” his mother said. “Let’s roll, boys.”

His father put an arm around him and gave it a good squeeze. “Your mom knows what she’s doing.”

“I agree with your dad,” Steve said.

“Do either of you have any idea how fucked up it is to hear the two of you talking like this?”

“Wait until we start in on who Zadie is going to call Grandpa or Pappy or whatever,” his father said.

Steve laughed. “I’ll just be happy to be included.”

Jamison couldn’t help it. He chuckled as he watched his mother and brothers jog off down the street. But that sound was cut short the moment they disappeared.

“It’s really going to be okay,” Steve said. “According to your dad, your mom and your brothers are the best at what they do.”

“He’s right about that.”

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